Decades of research highlight the important role of social and emotional competencies in child development. Social and emotional competencies facilitate a child’s success in developing and maintaining healthy relationships, coping with difficulties, and maintaining overall health and well-being. Children who lack core social and emotional competencies experience greater risks for future academic, behavioral, and social impairments (Thayer et al.,
2019). As a result, schools often implement Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) programs to directly teach social and emotional competencies in the classroom setting. A strong evidence base demonstrates the important benefits of SEL programs, including positive impacts on social-emotional skills, mental health, academic functioning, overall health and well-being, and risk-taking behaviors (Corcoran et al.,
2018; Dowling et al.,
2019; Durlak et al.,
2011; Taylor et al.,
2017). From a prevention standpoint, the elementary school years represent an important stage of development for directly addressing social and emotional competencies. Doing so is especially important for children from social and economic backgrounds who have traditionally faced multiple and ongoing hardships. A risk to these children is that these hardships will interrupt their developmental trajectory and lead to further problems later in life. As demonstrated by previous research, the knowledge and skills promoted within SEL interventions are associated with positive developmental trajectories (Taylor et al.,
2017). While resilience is often considered in the context of adaptation related to hardship, it is also an important aspect of overall positive development (Masten,
2014).
Social and Emotional Learning
Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process through which children develop knowledge, attitudes, and skills for understanding and managing emotions, setting and achieving goals, showing empathy, maintaining positive relationships, and making responsible decisions (CASEL,
2020). Social and emotional competencies are key to children developing into healthy and competent young adults and are important for success in school, work, and life (Carroll et al.,
2020; Nicoll,
2014). SEL is a process whereby children progress through different developmental tasks such as understanding basic emotional expressions in preschool to understanding unique emotional perspectives in high school. Despite the changing nature of specific tasks associated with SEL, core SEL competencies remain the same throughout development (Denham,
2018).
The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) has identified five core competencies of SEL: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. As defined by CASEL, self-awareness refers to the ability to recognize emotions and thoughts and their influence on behavior and assess personal strengths and limitations. Self-management refers to the ability to effectively regulate emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in different situations and to set and work toward goals. Social awareness refers to the ability to take the perspective of and empathize with others, to understand social and ethical norms for behavior, and to recognize available resources and supports. Relationship skills refer to the ability to establish and maintain healthy relationships, communicate well with others, negotiate conflict, and seek and offer help when needed. Finally, responsible decision-making refers to the ability to make constructive choices about personal behavior and social interactions, evaluate consequences of actions, and consider the well-being of self and others (CASEL,
2020).
An important function of the provision of SEL programs in schools is to prevent social-emotional and behavioral problems and promote student well-being and success (Thayer et al.,
2019). Carroll and colleagues (2020) point to a growing belief that SEL in educational settings is at least as important as academic content. In fact, the implementation of SEL programs in schools has become a widely accepted component of education. This is evidenced by federal legislation that increasingly supports educating the whole child (Greenberg et al.,
2017). Additionally, schools provide an ideal setting where social and emotional competencies can be taught, modeled, practiced, and reinforced.
Many different SEL programs have been developed and implemented in schools across the United States ranging from universal whole-class programs to targeted programs for at-risk children and those with skill deficits (Carroll et al.,
2020). Additionally, there has been significant growth in the number of states adopting standards for social and emotional learning and guidance to support implementation in schools (CASEL,
2018). Support for the implementation of SEL programs in schools is further bolstered by teachers, the majority of whom report that SEL should be an important part of a student’s experience in school, particularly in elementary school (Civic Enterprises,
2013).
Growth in the adoption and support of SEL programs is largely due to an increasing evidence base that supports the positive impact of SEL programs on a range of academic, behavioral, emotional, social, and cognitive outcomes for students at all developmental levels (Jones et al.,
2017). Two meta-analyses of school-based universal SEL interventions for students in kindergarten through high school provide evidence for positive outcomes of SEL related to improved social and emotional skills, attitudes, behavior, and academic performance (Corcoran et al.,
2018; Durlak et al.,
2011). There is also evidence for the long-term impact of SEL programs on positive youth development six months to 18 years following intervention on social and emotional assets (i.e., SEL skills and attitudes) and indicators of well-being (i.e., academic performance, emotional distress, and drug use; Taylor et al.,
2017). Research also suggests that benefits of SEL in schools often extend beyond positive impacts at the individual student level to overall classroom functioning and school climate (Greenberg et al.,
2017; Jones et al.,
2017).
When considering the value of SEL programs, it is important to look at improvement in SEL skills as well as prevention of later problems and promotion of resilience (Thayer et al.,
2019). From a public health perspective, SEL programs present an opportunity to positively impact the developmental trajectories and well-being of students and potentially prevent or reduce the detrimental effects of adverse experiences (Greenberg et al.,
2017). Implementation of programs to promote resilience in the face of adversity is an important strategy for reducing the impact of the accumulation of risk factors on child development (Duch et al.,
2019). For children who are more likely to face adverse experiences, such as those from ethnic minority and lower socio-economic backgrounds, developing and strengthening social and emotional competencies through SEL programs is important. In a recent study by West and colleagues (
2020), more than 282,000 fourth- through twelfth-grade students from 1033 schools in six districts completed a survey to examine trends in SEL development. Results from this large-scale panel study demonstrated that across all grade levels, economically disadvantaged students reported lower levels of social and emotional competencies (i.e., growth mindset, self-efficacy, self-management, and social awareness) than economically advantaged grade-level peers. African American and Latinx students reported lower levels of self-management and social awareness than their White and Asian grade-level peers. Both African American and Latinx students also reported lower self-efficacy than White students across all grade levels (West et al.,
2020). For economically disadvantaged ethnic minority children, promoting resilience by teaching social and emotional skills that foster positive relationships at school, increase academic engagement, and promote social competence and self-efficacy is an important mechanism for the prevention of maladaptive outcomes later in life (Henderson et al.,
2016).
SPARK Child Mentoring Program
The SPARK Child Mentoring program is a resilience-focused school-based SEL program designed to reduce risk factors, uncover innate resilience, promote natural emotional well-being, and facilitate school success. The SPARK Child Mentoring program was developed to meet the needs of elementary students between the ages of eight and ten years. The program covers relevant and relatable topics that cultivate social and emotional skills and help children better understand themselves and others and access their creativity and potential. The topics covered in the program and the nature of the activities used to teach and reinforce the program content are consistent with the SEL skills and developmental tasks unique to this age group. The SPARK Child Mentoring program employs the principles of Mind, Thought, and Consciousness. The principle of Mind represents the energy that powers thought and consciousness and has been conceptualized as the source of inner mental health and wisdom that is available to everyone. Throughout this program, Mind is referred to as the “SPARK.” It is described as the source behind all things in life: everything seen, felt, and experienced. This “SPARK” may also be called “intuition,” “instinct,” or “common sense.” The principle of Consciousness represents awareness and the ability to experience life, and the principle of Thought refers to the ability to think and create a psychological experience from within (Pransky & Kelley,
2014). Based on these principles, a foundational premise of the SPARK Child Mentoring program is that the capacity for positive development and healthy psychological functioning (e.g., resiliency, emotional competency, self-management, self-awareness, self-efficacy, social awareness) is innate and can be drawn-out of all children irrespective of their past socialization or exposure to adverse childhood experiences. By increasing understanding and insights around these principles, children can access and experience their natural, innate well-being and prevent negative developmental outcomes (Kelley,
2003). Uncovering and strengthening these competencies within children can reinforce their resilience and bolster their capacity to manage the relationships, responsibilities, expectations, and challenges they face (Kelley et al.,
2017a,
2017b). As suggested by Banerjee et al. (
2007), targeting the principles of Mind, Thought, and Consciousness is likely to produce more sustainable change than simply targeting an individual’s thoughts, thought processes, feelings, and behaviors.
Unlike many other SEL programs, the SPARK program does not focus on changing children’s thinking, feelings, or behaviors. Instead, it focuses on helping children realize that when their thinking changes, their experiences, feelings, perceptions, and states of mind also change. Therefore, the goal is to help children realize that when their personal thinking quiets, their mental well-being, common sense, and innate resiliency naturally surface. This differs from other SEL approaches that aim to help children identify and use techniques or strategies to quiet their minds or rid themselves of certain thinking. The SPARK Child Mentoring program is designed to provide students with insights that allow them to notice what they experience when their personal minds quiet and to understand that mental well-being, wisdom, and resilience are always available from within.